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All the important events from September 2008
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Exclusive:
Portuguese police turned down British help to find Maddy Daily Mirror
By Jon Clements Crime Correspondent
01/09/2008
Portuguese police turned down an offer to help find Madeleine McCann
from Britain's most senior murder investigator, it has emerged.
Durham Chief Constable John Stoddart wanted
to send a team of elite detectives to Praia da Luz after she went missing in 2007.
But Stoddart, chair of the Association
of Chief Police Officers' Homicide Working Group, was "disappointed" when the Policia Judiciaria vetoed the idea.
He said: "I would like to have sent a
team out there to provide some support to the investigation team.
"I'm disappointed that we couldn't help
out. I think we would have provided some expert advice and support."
The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell
said: "It is not surprising. However, our own investigations continue and we are following up several leads."
Claim: Prosecutor obliged
to investigate
01 September 2008 - 00h30
Thanks to Joana Morais for translation
Manuel Maysounave Jiménez seeks the reopening of the process of
Maddie McCann in order that a new lead supplied by him is investigated. This Spanish lawyer says he saw a couple with a girl,
"apparently Madeleine, in the bus station of Santander, about eight months ago".
The registered letter with this information,
to which CM had access, should reach the judge today. The letter begins by explaining he took eight months to reveal
this information "because I did not know that the PJ was spending their time working to support the wrong hypothesis by
incriminating Kate of the concealment of a non-existent corpse". The lawyer who is identified by the number 118
of the Lawyers' College of Alava, in the Basque Country, then describes what he alleges to have seen on the 18th of January 2008,
during a bus trip, which passed by Santander.
"I was spending some time in the bar of the station, when the surprise
arrived. A girl, four or five years old, beautiful, apparently Madeleine, entered with a couple aged from 45 to 55 years.
It was an unforgettable flash. I thought: "Already she is found."
Manuel Maysounave describes the girl as being
in "good health, happy and well dressed ". About the couple he says that they "were British" and that he did not feel that
there was "pressure" on the child. He described the man with a "white and little beard" with nearly 1.80 metres of height,
stating immediately after that he did not know photographs from the arguido Murat, leaving in the air an insinuation that
he could have been the kidnapper. Francisco Pagarete, lawyer of the British-Portuguese, does not know the letter and affirms:
"It's very strange."
The spokesman of the McCanns, Clarence Mitchell, also claims to know nothing about it. Rogério
Alves, one of the lawyers of the couple, guarantees that he doesn’t know about this new data and assures that they are
going to ponder on what to do.
DISPATCH LEFT DOUBTS IN THE AIR
At
the end of a year and a half of investigations and to avoid the suspicion that would result from the constitution of
arguido being kept eternally in the air, the Public Prosecution service of Portimão ended up by opting for the archiving of
the legal proceedings. However, the dispatch is far from closed in certainties. The magistrate of Portimão left in the air
many doubts regarding the behaviour of the parents, ending up by practically considering the abduction theory improbable.
The same was done by the PJ, though they did not manage to find evidence of the death of the child.
DETAILS
CATALOGUE OF CRIME
One of
the claims of the Spanish lawyer is to set himself up as an assistant in the process. However, the law defines very clearly which
crimes anyone can undertake such a request for; which is not the case here. In the process of Madeleine's disappearance,
only the interested parts, like the parents of the child, can apply for that procedural capacity.
TERMS
TO RUN
The archival of the legal proceedings happened in the last days of July. Since the process
has not accused any culprits, the term did not run on holidays. It is still possible for those procedurally involved to challenge
the Public Ministry's decision to archive. The McCann's are in a position to do so.
GONÇALO
IN SPAIN
Gonçalo Amaral, former co-ordinator of the investigation to Madeleine's disappearance, who
left the PJ at the end of June, was yesterday in the nearby country to present the Spanish edition of the book 'The Truth
of the Lie'. The Portuguese edition remains at the top of sales.
McCanns' spokesman to join Freud Communications PRWeek
Kate Magee
01-Sep-08
The McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell is joining Freud
Communications as a consultant.
He will join the agency on a twelve-month contract, specialising in issues and crisis
management, media training and scenario planning.
He will continue to advise the McCanns,
parents of missing child Madeline McCann, on a pro bono basis alongside his other clients Fiona MacKeown, the mother of the
teenager Scarlet who was murdered in Goa, the parents of murdered teenager Jimmy Mizen and the parents of missing teenager
Amy Fitzpatrick.
Mitchell said he had toyed with the idea
of setting up his own agency, but thought joining Freud would offer him more security. He didn't rule out setting up his own
agency in the future.
*
3rd paragraph later
amended:
He will continue to advise the McCanns,
parents of missing child Madeline McCann, on a monthly retainer basis. He will also provide pro bono support to his other
clients Fiona MacKeown, the mother of the teenager Scarlet who was murdered in Goa, the parents of murdered teenager Jimmy
Mizen and the parents of missing teenager Amy Fitzpatrick.
Madeleine McCanns' man now speaks for Freud Telegraph
Kate and Gerry McCann's once ubiquitous spokesman - has accepted a job with
a PR company.
Mandrake by TimWalker
Last Updated: 9:54PM BST 01 Sep 2008
In what will inevitably be seen as tacit acceptance that public interest
in the Madeleine McCann story is dwindling.
Clarence Mitchell tells Mandrake that he
will be joining Freud Communications, which was founded by Lucian Freud's nephew, Matthew.
"I'm going to specialise in crisis management
for a range of clients which might include businesses, football clubs or even showbiz personalities," says the former BBC
reporter. "I want to broaden out my portfolio of interests."
Mitchell, 47, told me in July that he had
been advising the parents of Jimmy Mizen, the 16-year-old schoolboy murdered in London in May, and Fiona MacKeown, the mother
of 15-year-old Scarlett Keeling, who was murdered in Goa in February, on a pro bono basis, but wanted to put himself on "a
firm financial footing".
He stresses that he will still represent
the McCanns, whose daughter went missing almost a year-and-a-half ago, and adds that he will be paid on a retainer basis from
the "Find Madeleine" fund.
"Kate and Gerry are happy for me to do
this, it became clear that I wasn't needed on a full-time basis to work for them anymore so this move makes sense," he says.
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Tuesday 02
September
2008
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McCanns' spokesman Clarence Mitchell joins
Freud Communications Guardian
Tracey Kandohla
Tuesday September 02 2008 09:35 BST
Clarence
Mitchell, Kate and Gerry McCann's spokesman, has joined PR and marketing agency Freud Communications.
Mitchell will be a consultant specialising in crisis and issues management, media training and scenario
planning at the agency, which counts Pepsi and Walkers Crisps among its clients. He started work yesterday.
The former BBC journalist has secured a 12-month contract at Freuds but will not stop working with the
McCanns, whose five-year-old daughter Madeleine has been missing for 16 months.
Mitchell said: "It is an exciting opportunity to work with one of the biggest and best PR companies in
the country.
"It gives me the potential to work with a much wider range of clients if and when they find themselves
in the news. Kate and Gerry and their financial backer Brian Kennedy have given me their full backing."
Mitchell will continue to advise the McCanns on a monthly retainer basis. He was being paid £80,000 by
Cheshire-based double glazing tycoon Kennedy, who is a backer of the McCanns.
He will also carry on supporting his other clients. They include Fiona MacKeown, whose daughter Scarlett
was murdered in Goa; the parents of Jimmy Mizen, who was stabbed to death in London; and the parents of missing teenager Amy
Fitzpatrick.
"My new role will involve different ways of working for clients depending on their circumstances. I will
advise them as part of the Freud services package," Mitchell said.
"I am working on a freelance basis which will allow me to continue speaking for Kate and Gerry whenever
Madeleine or the ongoing search for her is in the news. I am very happy to continue representing Kate and Gerry. This is not
a parting of the waves. I need to expand and consolidate what I am doing," he added.
"I am very pleased that Freud found my media background and high-level media contacts to be of sufficient
interest to take me on in this way."
At Freuds, Mitchell will report to Nicola Howson, the former ITV director of corporate affairs, who is
responsible for the agency's corporate and media practice.
Mitchell stepped down from his role as director of the media monitoring unit at the government's Central
Office of Information in September last year to handle the McCanns' PR full time [http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/sep/18/marketingandpr].
Before that, he had been acting as an adviser to the McCanns last summer at the request of the Foreign
Office, while retaining his government role.
Mitchell was previously head of media monitoring for the Cabinet Office.
He was also a journalist for 25 years, starting out in print and then as a broadcaster with the BBC, covering
a variety of stories including the Fred and Rose West murders and Soham. As a royal correspondent he covered the death of
Princess Diana.
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Wednesday 03
September
2008
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House in Luz for sale Correio da Manhã
Algarve: Ocean Club apartment costs 200 thousand euros
Ana Palma
03 September 2008 - 00h30
Thanks to 'astro' for translation
For a little over 200 thousand euros, at the moment, anyone can try to acquire apartment 5A of the Ocean Club, where
little Madeleine disappeared from, in Praia da Luz. According to what Correio da Manhã was able to establish, in the area
the price is considered to be within the "market average".
The owners, British citizens, have recently cut off relations with the Ocean Club, which until recently managed the property,
and chose a real estate firm in Praia da Luz, Houses & Casas, to promote the sale of the sadly famous T2 apartment, instead
of the agency that is directly connected to the Mark Warner resort, which is also located in that village of the Lagos municipality.
The house, which includes two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchenette and one bathroom, with two entries (one through
the main door and one through a small patio, on the pool side), which is furnished, has raised the interest of many buyers
– and journalists – but so far, the sale has not been closed.
According to local sources, it was with some relief that the Ocean Club management saw the responsibility for the apartment
that the McCann family chose to spend their holidays, taken away. 'The owners were very unhappy with everything that happened.
They picked up the house keys and took care of everything privately, without the resort's intervention', they referred.
Houses & Casas describes the apartment as a 'good house, with an excellent location and the possibility of generating
a profit'.
But curiously, until now no plaque with the indication 'For sale' and the contact number of the real estate agency has
been placed on the apartment or its surroundings, which leads to the belief that the sale is being prepared with utmost discretion,
both by the owners and the real estate firm.
Details
Inquiry – Since the night of Maddie's disappearance, on the evening of the 3rd of May last year, the apartment
was under the Judiciária's hold, but was occupied by private persons twice. Then it returned to the PJ's responsibility.
Location – At approximately 300 metres from the beach, the apartment is part of a resort that was built
over 20 years ago. It's a semi-detached ground floor residence. This is the house that was rented by Maddie McCann's parents,
where she disappeared from.
Odour – According to the PJ's report about the case, it was in the apartment that the dogs smelled cadaver
odour and traces of bodily fluids. Former inspector Gonçalo Amaral, who wrote a book about Maddie, believes that the child
died in the room.
Maddie flat goes up for sale The Sun
By STAFF REPORTER
Published: Today, 03 September 2008
THE Portuguese holiday flat where Madeleine
McCann was snatched from her bed is up for sale for £250,000, it was reported today.
British owner Ruth McCann – no relation to Madeleine – is selling the apartment
through a local estate agent, newspaper 24 Horas said.
Potential buyers could view the property from next week.
A source at the estate agent said: "We should have the key by the end of this week.
"The owner is asking for £250,000 for the flat."
Madeleine was almost four when she disappeared from the apartment in Praia da Luz on
May 3 last year.
Retired teacher Ruth McCann owns flat 5A at the Ocean Club holiday complex.
The two-bedroom apartment is 20 years old.
Crime scene
The Portuguese newspaper said the price of the apartment, 500m from the beach, is "substantially
higher than others with similar characteristics, also on sale in Praia da Luz."
The newspaper found a similar apartment, one minute from the beach, for just £103,000
on sale with Remax estate agents.
But an estate agent said the high price of the Ocean Club apartment was not down to
its association with the Maddie case.
The agent said: "It’s because it's a product directed primarily at the English
market."
The flat next door, 5B, is also said to be part of the sale.
Ocean Country estate agents are selling apartment 5B where the McCanns friends Matthew
Oldfield and his wife Rachael were staying at the time Maddie disappeared.
She vanished from flat 5A as parents Gerry and Kate McCann, both doctors from Rothley,
Leicestershire, dined at a nearby tapas bar.
The apartment was used by holiday-makers for nearly two months after Madeleine disappeared
before police sealed it off as a permanent crime scene.
It was crucial to the police investigation with forensic teams dusting the shutters
and specialists taking DNA samples from furniture.
It remained empty for a month after the McCanns moved out but was then available to
tourists last summer.
It was cordoned off in August last year.
Holiday apartment where Madeleine McCann went missing goes on sale for £250,000 Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 11:25 AM on 03rd September 2008
The infamous holiday flat where Madeleine McCann vanished has been put up for sale for £250,000.
The apartment in Praia da Luz in the Algarve is on the market and being advertised by a local estate agent, according
to a Portuguese newspaper.
Potential buyers could begin viewing the flat from as early as next week, raising the possibility of voyeurs keen to
see where the three-year-old disappeared looking round.
Flat 5A at the Ocean Club holiday complex has two bedrooms, measures 90 metres squared and is 20 years old. It is 500
metres from the beach.
Until now it has been owned by British woman Ruth McCann, a retired teacher who is no relation to Madeleine or her parents.
The estate agent, which has not been named, said: 'We should have the key by the end of this week. The owner is asking
for £250,000 (300,000 Euros) for the flat.'
According to the newspaper 24 Horas, the price of the property is 'substantially higher than others with similar characteristics'
also on sale in the resort.
Madeleine was days away from turning four when she vanished from the apartment on May 3 last year while her parents were
eating dinner at a nearby restaurant.
Another apartment just one minute from the beach is currently on sale for less than half the price at £103,000 (127,500
Euros).
An un-named estate agent claimed the higher price of the Ocean Club apartment was not due to its link to the case but
because it is aimed at the English market.
The next door flat, where Kate and Gerry McCann's friends Matthew Oldfield and his wife Rachel were staying when Madeleine
vanished, is also said to be on sale.
Their group was having dinner at the tapas bar 40 yards away and conducting regular checks on their children on the night
she went missing.
The apartment was used by holiday-makers for nearly two months after Madeleine disappeared before police sealed it off
as a permanent crime scene.
It was crucial to the police investigation with forensic teams dusting the shutters and specialists taking DNA samples
from furniture.
After the McCanns moved out, it remained empty for a month but was then made available to tourists last summer. It was
later cordoned off in August last year.
Its sale comes weeks after the Portuguese authorities officially shelved the case and declared Mr and Mrs McCann to be
entirely innocent.
They had been official 'arguidos' in the case since last September but always strenuously denied any involvement.
Robert Murat, the British ex-pat who was the first to be made an arguido in the case, was also cleared.
Police files released after the investigation was halted revealed scores of 'sightings' of Madeleine across Europe.
It was not clear to what extent they had been followed up by police, giving fresh hope of new leads which could help
the McCanns discover what happened to their daughter.
So far, however, all appear to have been dead ends but the couple from Leicestershire, who are both GPs, have vowed never
to give up their search.
Wednesday, 3rd September 2008
The Algarve holiday flat where Rothley girl Madeleine McCann disappeared last summer is being put up for sale, it has
been reported.
Apartment 5A in the Ocean Club complex in Praia da Luz is going on the market for between 200,000 and 300,000 euro (£160,000-£240,000),
according to Portuguese newspapers.
The two-bedroom flat - which was built 20 years ago and is 90 sq m (970 sq ft) in size - should be available for potential
buyers to visit from next week, the paper 24 Horas reported.
Estate agents in Praia da Luz could not confirm the reports, although one said she had heard rumours "from time to time"
that Apartment 5A was being sold.
McCann family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said: "I am not aware of this.
"But if 5A is being sold, that is entirely
a commercial matter for the owners.
"Kate and Gerry will not have any view on that. All they are concentrating on is
the search for Madeleine and their lawyers and investigators continue to be entirely focused on that."
Portuguese police
files released last month revealed that four families were allowed to stay in Apartment 5A after Madeleine's disappearance
on May 3 last year.
Despite the flat being a crime scene, 11 people stayed there between June 12 and July 26 last year,
raising the possibility that it was contaminated before fresh forensic examinations in August.
€140,000
1 bedroom apartment for sale
Property details
Key features:
- Excellent south facing
- Overlooking the pool area and tennis courts
- Waterside Garden
- Walking access beach
- Garden area
Full description:
Waterside Gardens - Praia da Luz
Excellent south facing, 1 bedroom ground floor apartment, within
one of the two blocks overlooking the pool area and tennis courts of the Waterside Garden section of the Luz Ocean Club Development.
Centrally located within easy walking access of the beach and local restaurants and supermarkets, This
spacious one bedroom one bathroom apartment with patio doors leading to a southfacing terrace also has its own garden area
and is very well located to gain access to all of the facilities available under the Ocean Club condominium.
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Thursday 04
September
2008
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Updated: 04 September 2008
The jury trial was requested in an appeal
from the defence lawyer António Pragal Colaço, who is representing four of the arguidos, Leonel Lopes, Pereira Cristóvão,
Marques Bom and Nunes Cardoso.
Although pleased with the fact that his appeal for this type of trial was accepted by
the judges, Pragal Colaço told The Resident he is not happy with the court's decision to include inspector Nunes Cardoso in
the list of arguidos to be judged by the jury Court.
According to him, Cardoso is accused of document forgery and that
crime cannot be tried by a jury: "This type of trial can only be asked for when dealing with crimes with minimum sentence
of eight years."
That is the case of the accusations of torture against inspectors Leonel Lopes, Marques Bom and Pereira
Cristóvão, who, he says, "are completely innocent and being used as scapegoats for political reasons".
This means,
says António Pragal Colaço, "there is a great risk of this trial being cancelled in the future, which is a waste of time and
compromises the defence's strategy completely".
The fifth arguido in this trial is Gonçalo Amaral, the former PJ inspector
who led the early stages of the Madeleine McCann case.
Gonçalo Amaral, who wrote a book about his involvement in that
investigation and was also one of the leading inspectors of the Joana Cipriano missing person case, is accused of false testimony
and of not denouncing the alleged torture.
A final date for the beginning of the trial has still to be set.
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By ALEX PEAKE and VERONICA LORRAINE
Published: Today, 05 September 2008
THESE were the scenes as two police sniffer dogs investigated the disappearance of little Madeleine McCann — and
left her shell-shocked parents wrongly in the frame.
The hounds' findings persuaded bungling Portuguese cops to name doctors Kate and Gerry as official suspects in the mystery.
Now video footage obtained by The Sun — and revealed for the first time today — lays bare the flimsy evidence
used to build the case against them.
The 2½-hour film, shot on a police camcorder, chronicles the work of two specially-trained British sniffer dogs. It details
the moments when the springer spaniels apparently detected:
The scent of a dead body in the McCanns' rented Renault Scenic, hired 25 days after Maddie vanished shortly
before her fourth birthday in May 2007
An aroma of blood in a bedroom cupboard in the family's Praia da Luz holiday apartment, and
A smell of death on Kate's clothes.
Dog handler and ex-PC Martin Grimes is seen working with the dogs, named Keela and Eddie, while Portuguese
detectives look on.
He remarks on camera that Keela will detect "very old" blood. Yet local cops quickly leapt on the findings.
Click below to see more pictures of the sniffer dogs searching McCann's property
Shortly after the dogs were drafted in, police made Kate and Gerry, both 40, "arguidos" — official
suspects.
Cleared
Although the couple, from Rothley, Leics, were eventually cleared, they went through ten months of added
hell as they led the search for Maddie, who has still not been found.
Last night ex-Flying Squad commander John O'Connor said: "I find it absolutely appalling the detectives
can treat the McCanns as official suspects on the back of such flimsy evidence."
The Sun's never-before-seen footage gives the true picture of how the investigation was conducted.
It shows the dogs in the McCanns' Algarve holiday home — apartment 5A of the Ocean Club in Praia de
Luz.
Eddie is first to be taken into the two-bed apartment and spends nearly 30 minutes sniffing around.
He barks twice — once in a bedroom and once at a spot behind a sofa underneath a living room window.
Martin says: "As soon as I came in the dog is very excited. From his body language it would appear he has
picked up a scent that he recognises.
"There is enough scent there for him to give me a bark indication."
After Eddie leaves the apartment, Martin takes in Keela. She can be seen freezing — a sign she has
found something — underneath the window where Eddie had earlier barked.
Martin says on camera: "The crime scene dog has given me a positive indication. That indicates to me there
is some human blood there. She will detect blood that is very old and find anybody’s blood."
While Portuguese cops carried out DNA tests on "fluids" found in the flat, it has never been revealed if
any blood was found.
Detectives also asked Martin to use his dogs on the McCanns' hire car.
Eddie is seen barking at the driver's door before standing still in the boot, then scrabbling in one corner.
Martin says: "We had a reaction from the dog. The scent is coming out of the sealed door."
The dogs also sniffed items of clothing — and the film shows Eddie again picking up a scent on some
of Kate's.
The family GP has insisted she came into contact with at least SIX dead bodies before going on holiday
with her husband and three children.
Martin and the spaniels are then taken round the apartment hired by the McCanns after Maddie vanished. No
evidence is uncovered there.
Portuguese police used the findings as a basis for their theory that Maddie had died in the family’s
apartment on the night she went missing.
The scent in the car convinced them the couple had hidden her body and later disposed of it, despite the
world's media watching their every movement.
Police files released last month showed that all DNA evidence against the McCanns had proved inconclusive.
Mr O'Connor, with more than 30 years' police experience, last night blasted the "ridiculous" Portuguese probe.
He said: "This clearly shows they were clutching at straws. It seems to me they have used the dogs to reinforce
their own prejudices.
"As far as I am concerned they suspected Kate and Gerry or their party of being involved from day one.
"They made up their mind so, when the dogs detected the scent, as far as they were concerned that was it.
"But the dogs found nothing that could be used as evidence in a court of law. They are a tool to finding
conclusive evidence, nothing more."
*
'It's crazy to rely on animals' The Sun
Published: Today, 05 September 2008
EXPERTS say sniffer dogs can play a vital role in fighting crime — but warn it is "madness" to rely on their findings.
The animals are used to lead police to evidence, but do not provide evidence themselves.
One expert told The Sun: "The dogs can identify traces of blood, but it's crazy to draw major conclusions just from what
they find.
"Any evidence they find should be used as a starting point. It's madness just to rely on the findings of the sniffer
dogs."
Handler Martin Grimes, who worked with his dogs on the Maddie case, admitted the animals offered no more than "a guide".
He said: "They can identify traces of blood and detect the smell of a decomposing body, but that is as far as they go."
Martin said his dogs Keela and Eddie would only give him an indication when they find what they are trained to detect.
Unreliable
He said: "Blood could be invisible to the naked eye, but Keela will detect it. It doesn't matter if it's hundreds of
years old.
"Eddie smells for the scent of a decomposing human body. He can detect any part of a human body that is decomposing —
hair, bones, flesh, anything.
"The smell of a decomposing body is very difficult to get rid of. It can easily be transferred to clothing and on to
a person."
A spokesman for the McCanns said: "Dog alerts can be unreliable. The handler himself makes it clear in the police report
that such alerts are meaningless without corroborative evidence. There was no such evidence.
"Gerry and Kate are not interested in dwelling on mistakes that were made. They and their investigation team wish to
focus entirely on finding Maddie."
*
Ruff Justice
Published: Today, 05 September 2008
SO now we know.
Portuguese police built their pathetic "case" against the McCanns on the say-so of two animals.
Sniffer dogs should be used to back up an already solid case, not as the foundations of one.
But the bungling sleuths were so prejudiced against Madeleine's parents — and so devoid of any actual clues —
that they gave absurd weight to every bark and sniff.
The only surprise is they didn't take the spaniels' statements and put them on the witness stand.
Kate McCann blasts Portuguese police chief who wrote book about hunt
for Madeleine Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 9:09 AM on 05th September 2008
Kate McCann has
branded 'a disgrace' the Portuguese detective who led the hunt for her daughter.
In her first interview since being cleared of involvement in Madeleine's disappearance, Mrs McCann openly
criticises Goncalo Amaral for his role in the inquiry and his decision to write a book about the search.
Mr Amaral, 48, was sacked from the investigation for briefing against Mrs McCann and husband Gerry.
The couple were made suspects while he was in charge of the case and had previously declined to speak
out against him publicly.
But the lifting of their arguido status has freed the McCanns to vent their anger.
In an interview with the Portuguese newspaper Expresso, published tomorrow, Mrs McCann, 40, is asked what
she thinks of Amaral and his book, a bestseller in Portugal. She replies: "It's a disgrace."
The McCanns' animosity towards him has long been known in circles close to the couple but until now they
have kept their counsel, not wishing to harm the police investigation into Madeleine's disappearance in May last year a few
days before her fourth birthday.
But the inquiry has now been shelved after Portuguese authorities ruled there was no evidence to bring
charges against either the McCanns or Robert Murat, the only other official suspect in the case, whose status has also been
lifted.
With no other leads, police have wound up the inquiry.
*
Later update:
Kate McCann blasts Portuguese police chief who wrote book about hunt for Madeleine Daily Mail
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 1:37 PM on 05th September 2008
Kate McCann has branded 'a disgrace' the Portuguese detective who led the hunt for
her daughter.
In her first interview since being cleared of involvement in Madeleine's disappearance, Mrs McCann openly
criticises Goncalo Amaral for his role in the inquiry and his decision to write a book about the search.
Mr Amaral, 48, was sacked from the investigation for briefing against Mrs McCann and husband Gerry.
The couple were made suspects while he was in charge of the case and had previously declined to speak
out against him publicly.
But the lifting of their arguido status has freed the McCanns to vent their anger and they have given
an interview to Portuguese paper Expresso to be published tomorrow.
Asked what she thinks of Amaral and his book, a bestseller in Portugal, Mrs McCann says: 'It's a disgrace.'
The McCanns' animosity towards him has long been known in circles close to the couple.
Until now they have kept their counsel, not wishing to harm the police investigation into Madeleine's
disappearance in May last year a few days before her fourth birthday.
But the inquiry has now been shelved after Portuguese gainst either the McCanns or Robert Murat, the only
other official suspect in the case, whose status has also been lifted.
In the interview the McCanns, both 40, from Rothley, Leicestershire, speak of their hopes for finding
Madeleine and their fears of being arrested last summer.
A short video posted on Expresso's website shows the couple looking relaxed as they answer questions,
both wearing the yellow wristbands of the official Find Madeleine campaign.
Mr McCann said: 'I will be honest. We have got no idea whether Madeleine is alive or not. What we are
certain of is that there is absolutely no evidence.'
Asked if the couple feared being arrested or accused by Portuguese police over their daughter's disappearance,
he said: 'If you believe what was written in the papers, then of course we feared it. The situation for us was very frightening,
of course it was.'
Quizzed whether this was why they returned to the UK in September last year, Mrs McCann replied: 'They
could still have arrested us, couldn't they. They could have stopped us from going home.'
Clarence Mitchell, the couple's official spokesman, said: 'Kate and Gerry have chosen to speak out to
an element of the Portuguese media now because they still firmly believe that there may well be important information that
somebody knows in Portugal.
'It is important the message is targeted in that region initially, and Kate and Gerry will assess the
reaction to their interview and public opinion in Portugal before deciding on whether to do any further media interviews in
the near future.
'Everything Kate and Gerry are doing now is geared towards assisting their own investigation into finding
Madeleine. They will do everything they can to generate vital new leads.'
Madeleine was nearly four when she vanished from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve resort
of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year as her parents dined with friends nearby.
Despite a huge police investigation and massive coverage in the Portuguese and British media, she has
not been found.
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Saturday 06
September
2008
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| Daily Mirror, 06 September 2008 |
Exclusive: McCanns
vow to keep searching
By Martin Fricker and Matt Roper
6/09/2008
Kate and Gerry McCann have spent £1million in the heartbreaking
search for Madeleine, they revealed yesterday.
And the couple insisted they will continue
their quest for as long as it takes to discover what happened to their five-year-old daughter.
Kate, 40, said: "It's a lot of money but
we can't set a limit. A child does not have a price. We will pay what we have to."
And she is still desperate for news of
her little girl: "It just takes one person to make the one phone call we so hope for. We want to find her alive. But if she's
dead we want to know."
FULL STORY: PAGE 4
*
Exclusive:
Parents will pay whatever it takes to find Madeleine
By Martin Fricker
and Matt Roper
6/09/2008
Kate
and Gerry McCann have told how three-year-old twins Sean and Amelie have been vital in helping them cope with their ordeal.
The innocent youngsters still poignantly
talk about when their sister Madeleine comes home.
And their parents say keeping the missing
five-year-old's memory alive for the twins is helping the couple through their torment.
Gerry, 40, said: "Because Sean and Amelie
are so small we've had to carry on with some form of normality to make things normal for them.
"The twins are three and a half and very,
very happy. It's only them who make life normal for us. For us personally, it will never be normal again."
Kate, also 40, added: "There are photos
of Madeleine all around the house and every day we speak to the twins about her.
"She is an important part of our lives.
Sean and Amelie still speak about her and involve her in their games.
"If they get sweets they say they are
going to save one for Madeleine or when she comes home they will give her this or that. It makes our days a little less difficult."
The couple have shielded the twins from
what few facts are known about Madeleine's disappearance in May last year.
Gerry revealed: "They realise Madeleine
is not here but they don't know the details.
"They know she has disappeared and that
we are looking for her. "They miss their older sister.
They know it's not a good thing not having
her with us and hope that she comes back." The two doctors, from Rothley, Leics, revealed that in just 10 months the Find
Madeleine fund has paid £1million to Spain's Metodo 3 detective agency to search for her.
And they are prepared to do and spend
whatever it takes to uncover the truth - no matter how grim.
Kate said: "It's a lot of money but we
can't set a limit. A child does not have a price. We will pay what we have to. It just takes one person to make the one phone
call we so hope for. We know she was abducted and believe someone knows or suspects something.
"We want to find her alive. But if she
is dead we want to know."
However, they still held out hope of having
her back safe and well.
Kate went on: "There are many theories
that she is still alive. There's nothing in the police report that indicates anything bad has happened to her."
The McCanns, spoke candidly at their home
to reporters Rui Gustavo and Raquel Moleiro from Portugal's influential Expresso newspaper.
In July they were cleared of involvement
in the abduction. But their bitterness lingers at their ever having been suspects.
Gerry revealed some of the shocking questions
cops asked him.
He said: "We were investigated in the
most intimate detail. 'What happened to Madeleine? How did you get rid of her? Who helped you?
'Where did you put her?' "My plan was
to stay quiet and not answer. But the first question was, 'Are you involved in the disappearance of your daughter?' It was
nonsense and I decided to respond."
Kate reserved her most withering condemnation
for detective Goncalo Amaral, who led the hunt and later wrote a book on the case.
She fumed: "All I will say about this,
because I'm not going to waste my time on Mr Amaral, is that as a professional and as a person his behaviour has been a disgrace."
And Gerry again expressed their lasting
anguish at leaving the kids alone as they went off for dinner in Portugal's Praia da Luz resort.
He believes the abductor was watching
them and chose his moment to pounce.
He insisted: "We were not negligent. But
we profoundly regret what happened because someone saw in our actions an opportunity to take Madeleine. I never thought something
like this would happen."
McCanns' £1m search for Madeleine BBC News
Page last updated at 07:09 GMT, Saturday, 6 September 2008 08:09 UK
Kate and Gerry McCann have spent more than £1m trying to find their daughter Madeleine, the couple have said.
Advertising, website costs, legal
fees and payments to several detective agencies made up the bulk of the bill.
And Mrs McCann told Portuguese
newspaper Expresso: "We can't set a limit. A child does not have a price. We will pay what we have to."
Madeleine, of Rothley, Leicestershire,
disappeared aged three on holiday in the Algarve on 3 May last year.
Mrs McCann said: "It just takes
one person to make the one phone call we so hope for. We know she was abducted and believe someone knows or suspects something.
"We want to find her alive. But
if she is dead we want to know. There's nothing in the police report that indicates anything bad has happened to her."
The £1m spent so far was described
as a "broad figure" by family spokesman Clarence Mitchell, and came from public donations and the proceeds of a £550,000 legal
payout from Express newspapers.
The family has received additional
financial support from Cheshire-based businessman Brian Kennedy.
There is a further £500,000 remaining
in the Find Madeline fund, Mr Mitchell added.
Madeleine
photos
In the interview, the couple also
said their three-year-old twins, who talk about their sister coming home, had helped them deal with what had happened.
Mrs McCann said: "There are photos
of Madeleine all around the house and every day we speak to the twins about her.
"She is an important part of our
lives. Sean and Amelie [the twins] still speak about her and involve her in their games."
In the interview, Mrs McCann criticised
detective Goncalo Amaral who led the police search for Madeleine and later wrote a book on the case.
"All I will say about this, and
because I'm not going to waste my time on Mr Amaral, is that as a professional and as a person his behaviour has been a disgrace."
Mr McCann said they "profoundly
regret" that someone saw in their actions the opportunity to take Madeleine, but insisted the couple had not been negligent.
I'll fund the McCanns until they find Maddie, vows double-glazing tycoon Kennedy Daily Mail
By DANIEL BOFFEY
Last updated at 10:05 PM on 06th September
2008
The multi-millionaire tycoon financing Kate and Gerry McCann's search for their daughter
has said he will support them for the rest of his life if necessary.
Double-glazing magnate Brian Kennedy,
48, said he would use his estimated £450million fortune to back the couple as long as Madeleine remained missing.
His pledge will alleviate concerns
about what will happen when Madeleine's Fund, made up largely of public donations, runs out. There is currently less than
£500,000 in the kitty, with £1million having already been spent on the hunt for Madeleine since her disappearance in May last
year.
Team McCann is now hiring a fifth
group of private investigators to help with the search.
Mr Kennedy, who has five children
with his wife Christine, lives in Wilmslow, Cheshire, and made his money through double-glazing firm Everest. He had not met
the McCanns before offering his help but now speaks to them almost daily.
A source said: 'Mr Kennedy got
involved after seeing Kate on television after she became an arguido. He felt compelled to do something. A fifth company is
going to be hired.
'Everything that can be done is
being done. But it is like looking for a grain of sand on a sea shore. The team are just desperate for leads now.'
The couple's lawyers are still
sifting through 13,000 pages of Portuguese police files, released last month. One team of investigators believed they had
found Madeleine in Morocco last year – but it turned out to be an American girl being kept against her will in a dispute
between her parents.
'It was desperately disappointing
when it turned out not to be Madeleine,' said a source. 'It was a low point for everyone concerned.'
Madeleine's Fund is already paying
investigators Metodo 3, Control Risks, Oakley International and an unnamed fourth company. However, as The Mail on Sunday
revealed last month, Oakley will not have its current £500,000 contract extended after missing a series of targets set by
Mr Kennedy.
Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns'
spokesman, said: 'We will leave no stone unturned in finding Madeleine.'
Gerry McCann buried Madeleine's body on
the beach, Portuguese detective says Telegraph (Note: This article was removed within 4 hours of appearing online)
The Portuguese detective who was sacked as head of the team investigating
the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has accused her father of burying her body on the beach near their holiday apartment
the same night that she was reported missing.
By David Harrison
Last Updated: 5:56PM BST 06 Sep 2008
In the latest of a series of extraordinary claims about the case,
Goncalo Amaral, says he believes that Maddy died accidently in the McCann's rented flat as the result of a fall and that her
father disposed of the body.
The disgraced detective - who has sold
120,000 copies of a book he has just published a book about the case - says an Irishman had claimed that he had seen Mr McCann
with a child in his arms walking towards the beach on the night that Maddy reportedly disappeared.
The McCanns dismissed the claims, made
in an interview with a Spanish newspaper, as "ridiculous".
Clarence Mitchell, the family's spokesman,
said: "As Kate has said today Mr Amaral is a complete disgrace.
"His comments are grossly defamatory and
utterly without foundation."
Mr Amaral, who has now retired from Portugal's
Judicial Police investigation force, says in the El Mundo newspaper: "The Portuguese police, like the British [police], and
also the prosecutor, who has now changed his opinion, thought the same. We are talking of a death involving third parties,
not of homicide.
"In the bedroom blood and the smell of
a body were found just below a window where there was a sofa. The father was there for a short time just outside this window
having a conversation with a friend.
"The parents said the girl did not have
a bad dream. Maybe the girl heard the father and climbed onto the sofa under the window. But the parents had pulled it away
from the wall. so that the girl would not get out, and Madeleine could have fallen."
The former policeman talks about the Irish
witness seeing Mr McCann carrying a child towards the beach and about sniffer dogs finding traces of blood and the scent of
a body on the wall of the apartment and in the boot of a car the couple hired 23 days after Maddy disappeared.
This prompts the interviewer to ask: "Gerry
McCann buried his daughter on the beach and then disinterred her and put her in the boot 23 days later?"
Amaral replies: "We don't know. The Irish
witness I have spoken about saw on television Gerry with a child in his arms arriving in the United Kingdom and declared it
was the same image that he had seen in May in Portugal. This man went two days without sleeping when he realised what he had
discovered."
The interviewer says that Amaral's claim
implies that the Tapas Nine - the McCanns and their friends who dined together on the night of Maddy's disappearance - had
all ageed to lie.
Amaral says: "All of them. Because, in
case you don't know, British legislation covering negligence in caring for children is very hard...In the United Kingdom,
if you leave a child alone for half an hour you will lose custody. After the death of Madeleine, if it had been made public
that it was an accident, all of them would have lost custody [of their children]."
The former detective describes how on one
occasion during a meeting Kate McCann had lowered her head and seemed to be totally distracted for several seconds before
coming back to being her usual self. "It appeared that she had escaped from the role that she was interpreting," he says.
Asked how she reacted when she was asked
if Maddy had been killed by falling from the sofa he replies: "She didn't say anything, she just lowered her head for a moment
as if she was on the point of fainting. She had an emotional crack that lasted for just a moment."
Amaral adds: "For me, Gerry hid the body
of Madeleine on the beach. And after some days he transfered it to his car. We were working in this direction.
"We lacked establishing the date, some
details, but we were on the way. The Irishman was on the point of coming to Portugal, but it took too long, and there were
external pressures. In the end he didn't make a statement to the [Judicial] Police."
A friends of the McCanns dismissed Amaral's
claims as "nonsense and legally extremely dangerous", and said that Kate and Gerry would sue Amaral if he published his book
in the UK.
Mr Mitchell said: "Mr Amaral needs to be
very careful in repeating those allegations. Kate and Gerry's lawyers are watching his words very carefully.
"He is also completely at odds with with
his own Attorney-General who, in lifting Kate and Gerry's "arguido" - official suspect - status, made it clear that there
is no evidence to suggest they are guilty of any crime whatsoever."
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Maddie hunt police failed us, say Kate and Gerry McCann Sunday Mail
By Euan Hamilton
Sep 7 2008
MISSING Madeleine McCann's parents claim their daughter could have been found by now
if she had vanished in the UK.
Kate and Gerry McCann slammed
Portuguese police's investigation into her disappearance from their holiday apartment in May 2007.
Speaking for the first time since
being cleared of involvement in her abduction, Scot Gerry, 40, of Rothley, Leicestershire, said: "I don't have any doubt it
would have been different if Madeleine disappeared in a British city.
"The English police have more
experience in kidnaps, they are more alert to the problem.
"Morocco is a good example of
what went wrong with the investigation.
"A sighting was reported at a
garage near Marrakech and it was said there were cameras at the petrol pump.
Inspectors concluded there weren't.
There were in the shop. When police
returned the tape was recorded over."
New slur on Madeline McCann's father Gerry by shamed cop
Daily Mirror
By Nick Owens
7/09/2008 (15:00)
Shamed Portuguese detective Goncalo Amaral stooped to a new low
last night - disgracefully claiming Gerry McCann buried daughter Madeleine on a beach the night she went missing.
In his most sickening outburst yet, sacked
Amaral said Gerry went back days later to move her body so the police would never find it.
Last night Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns
official spokesman, said: "Mr Amaral is a complete disgrace. His repetitive slurs are not only grossly defamatory but they
are completely unfounded.
"What he says is so utterly at odds with
reality it beggars belief.
"Kate and Gerry are looking and watching
at everything he does and will not hesitate to take legal action against him if he continues to act in this sickening manner."
Last week Kate herself spoke angrily about Amaral. She said: "As a professional and a person he has been a disgrace."
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Tuesday 09
September
2008
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Exclusive John Scheerhout
9/ 9/2008
TOP former detectives
from Greater Manchester Police could be recruited by the team trying to finding missing Madeleine McCann.
Chief Supt
Steve Heywood, head of the serious crime division of Greater Manchester Police, has been asked to provide a list of retired
or about-to-retire officers.
Madeleine was snatched while on holiday in Portugal just a few days short of her fourth
birthday last year.
The Find Madeleine Fund was set up with help from individual donations and is now being bankrolled
by Sales Sharks boss Brian Kennedy.
It is understood that he is now considering the list provided by GMP. Among the
list of "senior investigating officers" is former Det Supt Andy Tattersall.
Mr Kennedy has already spoken to him about
the case. Mr Tattersall retired last year but still works for the force in a civilian role looking at historic murder cases.
Another
former Manchester police officer Henri Exton, 57, is currently involved in the hunt for Madeleine. He is understood to be
a shareholder in American-based private investigators Oakley International.
It is understood that Mr Kennedy is happy
with the work being done by Oakley but Mr Exton is taking a 'back seat' following publicity around the case.
A source
close to the inquiry said: "The main concern all along has been to find Madeleine. Everything else is secondary. It would
be silly not consider alternatives if they could help find her," said a source.
"Oakley has a contract and there is
no intention of severing that. But that's not to say that in two or three weeks or a month that might not change,"
Mr
Tattersall co-wrote with another Manchester detective, Tony Cook, the 'A to Z checklist of murder investigation' which is
used by police forces across the country. He also worked on the investigation into the murder of special branch officer Stephen
Oake which ended in the jailing of terrorist Kamel Bourgass.
But Mr Tattersall was also involved in the Jill Dando
murder case which identified Barry George as the culprit. Mr Tattersall insisted the conviction was safe but it was quashed
on appeal.
A spokesman for GMP said: "We were approached by the charity who asked us if we knew of any retiring or
recently retired officers who could help with their inquiries. We have given them details of some eligible officers or former
officers. As far as we are aware, no decision has been made by the charity, but we are not involved in the selection process."
Madeleine
was abducted from the flat in Praia da Luz on May 3 while her parents were dining 50 yards away. During the summer, Portuguese
police decided to shelve the case and lift 'arguido', or official suspect, status on Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry,
both 40, from Rothley, Leicestershire.
Madeleine McCann: Top British detectives are lined up to join the
hunt Telegraph
Some of the country's most experienced police detectives are being approached
to join a team to help find Madeleine McCann.
By Ben Farmer
Last Updated: 4:46PM BST 09 Sep 2008
The
Find Madeleine Fund has asked for lists of suitable retired or soon-to-retire officers from forces across the country.
The fund, which is now being bankrolled by Brian Kennedy, the owner of Sale Sharks rugby team, is understood
to have approached several police forces around the country including Greater Manchester.
Madeleine, three, disappeared from the family's apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal during a family holiday
in May last year.
Chief Supt Steve Heywood, head of Greater Manchester Police's (GMP) serious crime division, is among those
who have been asked to provide a list of officers, while Mr Kennedy is said to have already met former Det Supt Andy Tattersall,
who retired from the force last year.
Mr Tattersall co-wrote the A To Z Checklist of Murder Investigation which is used by police forces across
the country.
He worked on the investigation into the murder of special branch officer Stephen Oake, stabbed to death
by terrorist Kamel Bourgass during a raid in 2003, and was involved in the Jill Dando murder case.
A spokesman for GMP said: "We have given details of some eligible officers or former officers. As far
as we are aware, no decision has been made by the fund."
Clarence Mitchell, spokesman for the McCanns, said: "Kate and Gerry McCann, the fund and its backers have
always sought to employ or use the very best people and resources in the search for Madeleine.
"If police expertise is potentially available anywhere, the fund and Gerry and Kate would naturally considering
using it."
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Wednesday 10
September
2008
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Thursday 11
September
2008
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Saturday 13
September
2008
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EXCLUSIVE British police stop Portuguese gaff
By Tracey Kandohla
14 September 2008
Furious British police threatened legal action against Portugal's Madeleine McCann
investigation cops in a row over paedophiles, The People can reveal.
Portuguese officers planned to
name up to 80 British sex pests who were known to be in the country at the time the youngster went missing.
But Leicestershire force's Detective
Superintendent Stuart Prior blocked the move, claiming that naming registered sex offenders would do nothing to help the Maddie
investigation - and could lead to vigilante attacks.
A legal source close to Maddie's
parents Kate and Gerry, both 40, said yesterday: "There was a huge row between the British and Portuguese police which was
finally settled out of court."
The latest fall-out has just emerged
as McCann lawyers in Portugal continue to sift through volumes of official papers after local cops closed the case.
Maddie from Rothley, Leics, went
missing just days before her fourth birthday in the Algarve's Praia da Luz 16 months ago. She is feared to have been snatched
by a paedophile ring. The legal source explained: "The first thing Leicester police did was offer up a known records of all
British paedophiles in not just the Algarve but the whole of Portugal. There were 70-80 names on that list.
"People on the sex offenders'
register are required to tell police if they go away. The majority were accounted for and police were satisfied with their
movements."
Portugal's heavily-criticised
Policia Judiciara then decided their names should be made public.
But furious Det Supt Prior flew
to Portugal and threatened legal action to stop the PJ, who eventually backed down.
A Leicestershire police spokesman
said yesterday: "We are not prepared to comment on information that was supplied to Portugal in confidence on a police-to-police
basis."
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Tuesday 16
September
2008
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16/09/2008
- 14:28:10
British police will consider whether it is in the public interest to release information about their involvement
in the Madeleine McCann inquiry, officials said today.
A number of media organisations made requests under the Freedom
of Information Act for details about their role in the investigation.
But Leicestershire Constabulary, which led the
British side of the investigation for their Portuguese counterparts, said it must apply the 'public interest test' before
agreeing to disclosure.
In a written response, Linda Dempsey, of the force's data protection department, said: "An
initial meeting has now been held and from this we are still in the process of preparing the Public Interest Test regarding
the intended response.
"It will be necessary to consult with other agencies to assist in this matter in order for us
to give the due consideration that must be given to such a high profile case and the need to balance the needs for disclosure
or not.
"It is clearly mandated in the Secretary of State's code of practice part IV that this consultation should
take place."
*
Foreword
Introduction
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The Code of Practice, to which this is a foreword, fulfils the duty of the Secretary of State set out in section 45 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, to provide guidance to public authorities as to the practice which it would, in his
opinion, be desirable for them to follow in connection with the discharge of their functions under Part I of the Act. It is
envisaged that Regulations to be made with respect to environmental information will make provision for the issue by the Secretary
of State of a Code of Practice applying to the discharge of authorities' functions under those Regulations.
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This foreword does not form part of the Code itself.
-
The Government is committed to greater openness in the public sector. The Freedom of Information Act will further this
aim by helping to transform the culture of the public sector to one of greater openness, enabling members of the public to
better understand the decisions of public authorities, and ensuring that services provided by the public sector are seen to
be efficiently and properly delivered. Conformity with the Code will assist this.
-
The aims of the Code are to:
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facilitate the disclosure of information under the Act by setting out good administrative practice that it is desirable
for public authorities to follow when handling requests for information, including, where appropriate, the transfer of a request
to a different authority;
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protect the interests of applicants by setting out standards for the provision of advice which it would be good practice
to make available to them and to encourage the development of effective means of complaining about decisions taken under the
Act;
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facilitate consideration by public authorities of the interests of third parties who may be affected by any decision to
disclose information, by setting standards for consultation; and
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promote consideration by public authorities of the implications for Freedom of Information before agreeing to confidentiality
provisions in contracts and accepting information in confidence from a third party more generally.
IV Consultation with Third Parties
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There are many circumstances in which:
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requests for information may relate to persons other than the applicant and the authority; or
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disclosure of information is likely to affect the interests of persons other than the applicant or the authority.
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It is highly recommended that public authorities take appropriate steps to ensure that such third parties, and those who
supply public authorities with information, are aware of the public authority's duty to comply with the Freedom of Information
Act, and that therefore information will have to be disclosed upon request unless an exemption applies.
-
In some cases is will be necessary to consult, directly and individually, with such persons in order to determine whether
or not an exemption applies to the information requested, or in order to reach a view on whether the obligations in section
1 of the Act arise in relation to that information. But in a range of other circumstances it will be good practice to do so;
for example where a public authority proposes to disclose information relating to third parties, or information which is likely
to affect their interests, reasonable steps should, where appropriate, be taken to give them advance notice, or failing that,
to draw it to their attention afterwards.
-
In some cases, it may also be appropriate to consult such third parties about such matters as whether any further explanatory
material or advice should be given to the applicant together with the information in question. Such advice may, for example,
refer to any restrictions (including copyright restrictions) which may exist as to the subsequent use which may be made of
such information.
-
No decision to release information which has been supplied by one government department to another should be taken without
first notifying, and where appropriate consulting, the department from which the information originated.
-
Where information to be disclosed relates to a number of third parties, or the interests of a number of third parties may
be affected by a disclosure, and those parties have a representative organisation which can express views on behalf of those
parties, the authority may consider whether it would be sufficient to notify or consult with that representative organisation.
If there is no representative organisation, the authority may consider that it would be sufficient to notify or consult with
a representative sample of the third parties in question.
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Wednesday 17
September
2008
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Thursday 18
September
2008
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Saturday 20
September
2008
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Tuesday 23
September
2008
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Wednesday 24
September
2008
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Thursday 25
September
2008
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Was Madeleine Spotted In Majorca?
Sky News
BREAKING
NEWS 3:46pm UK, Friday September 26, 2008
Alex Watts, Sky News Online
Detectives searching for Madeleine McCann are investigating
a sighting of the little girl on a beach in Majorca.
A British couple claim they saw the youngster with
two women at Cala d'Or, in the south east of the island.
They went to their hotel to check
internet pictures of Madeleine and were certain it was her.
But when they returned to the
beach there was no sign of the girl, who was three when she vanished in Portugal on May 3 last year.
Police on the island have launched
a search of nearby hotels and holiday apartments.
Clarence Mitchell, family spokesman
for the McCanns, thanked the couple for reporting the sighting.
He told Sky News Online that detectives
employed by the Madeleine Fund are investigating.
He added: "Kate and Gerry are
very grateful to the British couple concerned, however we can't go into any further detail until our investigators have checked
out the report."
He stressed that the two doctors
would not build up their hopes, because there had been many sightings of their daughter which had come to nothing.
Madeleine disappeared from a holiday
apartment in Praia da Luz while her parents Kate and Gerry dined with friends in a nearby restaurant.
*
Original report:
BREAKING NEWS 12:42pm
UK, Friday September 26, 2008
A
police search is underway after a British couple said they spotted missing Madeleine McCann on a beach in Majorca, say reports
The tourists claim they saw the
youngster with two women at Cala d'Or, in the south east of the island.
They went to their hotel to check
internet pictures of the girl and were certain it was her, The Sun reported.
But when they returned to the
beach there was no sign of the girl, who was three when she vanished in Portugal on May 3 last year.
They reported the incident to
police, who have launched a search of nearby hotels and holiday apartments.
A police source was quoted as
saying: "Officers are looking in hotels and holiday apartments to try to locate the young girl this couple saw.
"So far we have not been able
to find her. The couple's account was detailed and there were no contradictions in their statements.
"However, we are aware of the
numerous previous sightings all over the world that have turned out to be false and it could well be that the couple have
made an honest mistake."
A spokesman for the McCanns was
unavailable for comment when contacted by Sky News Online.
Madeleine disappeared from a holiday
apartment in Praia da Luz while her parents Kate and Gerry dined with friends in a nearby restaurant.
Police investigate claimed Madeleine McCann sighting in Majorca
Telegraph
Spanish police have been searching for Madeleine McCann on the holiday island
of Majorca after a British couple claimed to have spotted the missing child on a beach.
By Fiona Govan in Madrid
Last Updated: 7:46PM BST 26 Sep 2008
Two holidaymakers were convinced that they saw Madeleine, who disappeared from a holiday
apartment in the Algarve almost 15 months ago, at the Cala d'Or resort on the south of the island last Sunday morning and
reported the sighting to local police.
The British couple told police
that they saw a young blonde girl matching Madeleine's description in the company of two women, both aged 40 - 50, who appeared
to be northern European.
A police spokesman on the island
confirmed that searches were being carried out but had so far proved fruitless.
"Officers are looking in hotels
and holiday apartments to try to locate the young girl this couple saw," he said on the condition of anonymity.
"So far we have not been able
to find her."
He admitted that although the
couple who reported the sighting seemed genuinely convinced it was unlikely that the girl was Madeleine.
"The couple's account was detailed
and there were no contradictions in their statements," he said.
"However, we are aware of the
numerous previous sightings all over the world that have turned out to be false and it could well be that the couple have
made an honest mistake."
"The couple believe they saw the
girl last Sunday.
"At first they attempted to try
to contact the McCanns through the internet.
"They reported the incident to
us on Wednesday after seeing a missing persons poster with Madeleine's photograph on it."
The British couple, who are in
their 50s, were on a two-week First Choice holiday at the Hotel Cala D'Or Playa and had arrived on September 11. They flew
back to Manchester on Thursday.
A member of staff at the hotel
where they were staying said: "The woman was quite upset because she was so convinced it was Madeleine.
"They first saw the girl with
the two women on the beach last Sunday morning.
"The girl was on her own under
a parasol on the beach with a colouring book, which struck the couple as odd.
"They noticed her similarity to
Madeleine and tried to get closer, but because of the sunglasses and they couldn't see if she had Madeleine's distinctive
eye.
"The woman is very religious and
was praying a lot because she did not know what to do.
"She saw the two women with the
girl again later in the week, and the girl was trying to drag them down to the beach, although it was dark, which she again
found odd.
"On Wednesday she came to the
hotel staff to report the incident after seeing a photograph on a Find Madeleine poster in a newspaper and being convinced
it was her.
"One of the staff members took
her to the police and acted as a translator while the couple gave their statement."
Kate and Gerry McCann, both 41
year-old doctors from Rothley, Leics, have been informed of the development and members of their team of private detectives
are poised to travel to the island to investigate.
"Kate and Gerry and the investigative
team are aware of this development and will be liaising with the local authorities as they have done with every potential
sighting," said Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman.
"This couple did the right thing
by reporting their concerns to the police at the time."
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Saturday 27
September
2008
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Saturday, September 27, 2008, 09:30
The McCann family's private investigators have joined a huge police search in Majorca
following a reported sighting of missing Madeleine.
Police in the resort of Cala d'Or,
in the south east of the island, were contacted by a British couple, who believe they saw the youngster on a beach with two
women.
The couple said the little girl
"looked a lot like" Madeleine, and after checking internet pictures of the girl back at their hotel, said they were certain
it was her.
The couple went back to the beach
to find the girl, but the group had gone, so they reported the sighting to police .
The two women were both described
as aged 40 to 50, and appeared to be northern European.
Detectives on the island have
been combing hotels and holiday apartments in the area following the reported sighting on Sunday.
Private teams working for Kate
and Gerry McCann are also hunting for information which could help track down the two women.
Clarence Mitchell, the family
spokesman, said they do not want to get their hopes up.
He told the Leicester Mercury:
"We are aware of these reports. Kate and Gerry will wait to be informed by either the Spanish police or their own investigative
team as to whether there is anything in them.
"We're grateful to the British
couple concerned for bringing this to the attention of the police as quickly as they did, but obviously there have been a
number of reports of sightings in the past that have come to nothing.
"The authorities in Spain have
been looking at this for a few days now and our investigators are aware of the reports and will also be checking them out
thoroughly."
Madeleine was just a few days
short of her fourth birthday when she vanished from a holiday apartment in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz in May last
year.
Following this latest sighting,
police in Cala d'Or have been searching buildings in the town and the nearby resorts of Cala Egos and Cala Ferrera.
A police spokesman told the Mercury
that the description given by the British couple was detailed and there were no contradictions in their statements.
He said: "We have all our personnel
investigating this news at the moment.
"We are looking in all the hotels
and holiday apartments, all the places possible.
"These English people say they
have seen somebody who looks like Madeleine. They say she looked a lot like Madeleine, but obviously we are not sure.
"We are checking all the hotels
where these people could be."
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Tuesday 30
September
2008
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Tuesday, September 30, 2008, 09:30
The parents of missing Madeleine McCann are calling for a "Maddie" reference
to be removed from a new video game.
Game developer Bungie has
courted controversy after a teaser trailer for the new Halo 3 Campaign Experience flashed up with the phrase "Maddie, where
are you?".
Clarence Mitchell, the spokesman
for Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry, said they were aware of the reference.
He said: "There is a brief
glimpse of the phrase.
"If this was designed to
be a reference to Madeleine then that would be in very poor taste and deeply disappointing to Kate and Gerry.
"The game manufacturer has
said it is a coincidence and we are happy to take that on face value.
"Having said that, we would
like the reference to be removed or amended, but I don't know how possible that is."
The game is an "expansion
pack" to the highly successful Halo 3 – a science fiction shooting game published on the Xbox 360.
The minute-long trailer
for the game features pods landing on a futuristic city. The view then moves to a helmet camera.
Various messages and phrases
flash up on the screen.
The Maddie reference is
visible for less than a second on three frames, but was spotted by British gamers.
They then posted it up on
web forums.
Bungie then responded to
the concerns on the official Halo forum.
A spokesman said: "This
is an unfortunate coincidence but there is no connection between Bungie's game and the tragic disappearance of that little
girl.
"As always, all of the characters in our games
are fictional.
"Any similarities between
real life and the characters in our games are purely coincidental.
"That said, this is both
an unfortunate and unintended coincidence."
Madeleine, from Rothley,
was snatched while on holiday in Praia da Luz, Portugal, just a few days before her fourth birthday last May.
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| Screenshot of Maddie message on video game |
Created: 30.09.2008 13:49 (12:49 UK time)
Police in Poland have investigated whether a Polish couple
from Warsaw were involved in the kidnapping of the four-year old British girl Madeleine McCann in May 2007.
"Two days after the kidnapping,
Portuguese authorities asked us for help looking for the missing girl. According to their information,
a Polish married couple were staying in the same hotel as the McCanns at that time," a source within the Polish state prosecutor's
office has revealed to tvp.info Internet service.
The source
also told the service that Portuguese investigators wanted the Warsaw police to immediately search the Polish couple's flat
to look for any clues.
"We could not agree to that,
because the mere fact that they were staying at the same place was not enough evidence," the source explained.
But tvp.info
reporters have found out that the police in Warsaw did put the Polish couple under discreet police surveillance. As a result,
any links between them and the missing Madeleine were disproved.
Madeleine McCann,
aged four, disappeared from her parents hotel room in the Portuguese seaside resort of Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007 when the
McCann's were out dining. It has been speculated that she might have been abducted by an international paedophile gang.
The international
search for the missing girl continues. (mj)
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With thanks
to Nigel at
McCann Files
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